Melton community stalwarts receive Royal seal of approval

Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Mike Kapur, with the BEM and MBE recipients at the ceremony, from left – Paul Gardner, Brian Jackson, Barbara Chantrell, Jessica Daley, Willian (Bill) Brown, with Richard Easom (front).

Two people from the Melton area have been honoured for their community service at a ceremony organised by the King’s representative in the county.

Bob White, who helped found a support group for local men with prostate cancer and their families, was presented with a Coronation Champion award by Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Mike Kapur OBE.

Richard Easom, a former long-serving parish councillor serving villages including Grimston, was also at the event, at Beaumanor Hall, near Loughborough, to receive a British Empire Medal (BEM) from Mr Kapur.

The Lord Lieutenant, who invited county residents named in recent honours lists to the ceremony, said: “I am so pleased that we were able to gather to recognise 13 of the best examples of community stalwarts in Leicestershire.

Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Mike Kapur, with the Coronation Champions at the ceremony, from left - Bob Lee, Bob White, Adam Jones, Helen Crouch, Geoffrey Kirk, Kimberley Durham and Jasu Tailor

“It was a real pleasure and privilege for me, in my role as Lord-Lieutenant, to present these honours and awards to each of the deserving individuals.”

Richard retired last year after amazingly attending almost every meeting of Grimston, Saxelbye and Shoby Parish Council since the early 1960s.

The former farmer achieved much during his long service on the parish council, lobbying to keep Grimston School open for many years until it finally closed.

He played a leading role in getting street lighting in Grimston and in helping the village gain conservation status.

Richard also pressured the local authorities into building bus shelters built throughout the parish.

His career also included three years as a councillor on the local Rural District Council, the precursor to Melton Borough Council.

Bob, who was accompanied to the ceremony by his wife, Jane, and daughter, Penny Biggs, was one of only 500 nationwide recipients of the Coronation Champion accolade, which was given out to mark the accession to the throne of King Charles III in May.

He was a co-founder Melton Prostate Cancer Support Group seven years ago after winning his own battle with the disease and he also volunteers with PROSTaid, which promotes awareness and offers support to men across Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire.

Bob dedicates a lot of his free time to organise monthly meetings with guest speakers, liaising with oncologists, urologists, and prostate cancer nurses, as well as supporting individuals in their own cancer journey.

He also holds numerous street stalls to promote awareness and information about prostate cancer in men and is involved in a national ‘patient's panel’ alongside the NHS as a patient advocate in order to improve outcomes for those with all types of cancers.

Bob not only proactively encourages men to get the very best treatments available, but also acts as a ‘buddy’ to men recently diagnosed with prostate cancer or puts them directly in touch with someone else going through exactly the same type of cancer and treatment so that they can help and support each other ‘one-to-one’.

Bob was one of seven Leicestershire people given Coronation Champion awards at the event.

Mr Kapur served as a Deputy Lieutenant of Leicestershire from 2015 before being appointed as Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire three years later.